Are You Underutilizing OOH?

OOH Is Underutilized

Most advertisers limit their thoughts on out of home to just billboards or taxi ads, but the world ofOOH is so much bigger than that. Once a brand can embrace the idea that technology haserased any previous boundary between advertising and point-of-purchase, they realize howmany opportunities to directly connect to consumers they’ve missed.

Looking historically at consumption, we humans have always pushed for convenience. Thetrading post was more convenient than trapping your own beaver pelts just as the supermarketwas more convenient than driving around town to multiple stores. Now as society has fullyembraced online purchasing and smartphones have become how we get online, the consumer’sdigital and out-of-home experiences have melded in a way few brands have leveraged. Retailstores, instead of closing, should be looked at as OOH advertising and OOH advertising shouldbe looked at as extensions of the retail footprint. Yes, billboard impressions are still valuablecomplements to, and extensions of, digital channels, but a person sitting on a train can buy aproduct just as easily as they could in a brick and mortar store or sitting on their couch at home.So why should visual merchandising, digital strategy, and OOH advertising creative havedifferent conversion goals?

Transit advertising locations, such as bus shelters and train platforms, give brands anopportunity to get so close to consumers that interactive, tactile experiences become possible, much like in a retail environment

Transit advertising locations, such as bus shelters and train platforms, give brands anopportunity to get so close to consumers that interactive, tactile experiences become possible,much like in a retail environment. These locations also give advertisers great opportunities topresent their products in a way where customers can take the time to examine them, noticedetails, or experience some features. Take a standard bus shelter for example, you’ll find thesein almost every major market, studies and experiments by industry associations have shownthat impressions even from just static posters at these locations really work over time to driveconsumer action. That same bus shelter, though, has the potential to transform into a powerfulpoint of purchase machine. The entire structure of that shelter- the roof, bench, pillars, lighting,glass windows, and adbox (in most markets)- is fully customizable. It can be outfitted withinteractive props, media presentations, social media connections, and even actual productvending technology. Sounds like a store to me. Once combined with the surrounding dynamicOOH media, geo-targeted mobile advertising, and researched consumer travel paths, it’s now apowerhouse.

I see these kinds of opportunities literally everywhere I go, and with the type of highly detaileddemographic data available, these opportunities can be creatively targeted in amazing newways that were not possible even five years ago. The best OOH advertising encouragesconsumer action and seamlessly ties into online advertising channels. With unprecedentedknowledge of how consumers interact with both brands and the physical world around them acommute path can be transformed into a carefully crafted set of touch points and experiencesthat direct qualified consumers towards the conversion, wherever that may take place. Everybrand wants to be a lifestyle brand, but that requires actually being a part of a person’s real life.So how can an agency take advantage of this? The first step is exploring what’s out there andgetting an idea of what it costs. Knowing this information upfront can change the whole mindsetof a creative team and regularly triggers new ideas that can change the entire creative directionof a campaign. Concepting for the physical space can be a hard transition for creatives whohave spent their career making the best of 2D graphics, but learning what is possible andkeeping up with new advancements will soon be required to keep a competitive edge. Tools likeGoogle SketchUp provide an easy way to visualize a 3D space and come with a warehouse ofpre-designed elements. Reaching out and talking with media holders can elicit unique ideas orlocations to consider. However, there is nothing better than visiting a few qualified locations andsimply walking around, getting a feel for how people interact with that location, and looking foropportunities to expand upon the normal.

Remember that technology is both a challenge and an opportunity for marketers and correctlyharnessing that opportunity will move brands into this new era. This level of experiential thinkingis no longer an oddity or icing on your campaign’s cake, it is how consumers want to interactwith a brand and should be built into the underlying framework of every campaign movingforward.

William (Bill) Board. Experienced, reliable source in all facets of the Out of Home Industry. Alternative Voice for Outdoor Advertising. Infectious love of all things OOH. Publisher. Writer. Seller. Buyer. Owner. Investor. Champion. Confidant. Old and New Biz Expert. Sales. Manager. Billboard Doctor. Social Media Upstart. Specialization in outdoor advertising for so many years. Sold over 100,000 locations. Viewed every billboard location in America except Maine.